Chapter 7 No.7

Elara POV:

My mind went completely blank. His lips were firm, demanding, moving against mine with a hunger that stole my breath. But all I could taste was whiskey and another woman.

His large, calloused hand slid from my shoulder down to my waist, pulling me flush against his hard body. The touch, which should have felt like coming home, felt like a violation. It wasn't for me.

A wave of alcohol-fueled lust rolled off him. He groaned, his voice a low, gravelly whisper against my mouth. "Seraphina... be good..."

That name. Her name.

It was a bolt of lightning that struck me from the inside out, jolting me back to reality. The dream shattered into a million sharp, painful pieces.

"Alaric, stop," I gasped, trying to twist my head away, but he was too strong.

He didn't seem to hear me. He scooped me up into his arms as if I weighed nothing and carried me out of the kitchen. I struggled, but it was like a mouse fighting a lion.

He kicked open the door to his bedroom and tumbled us both onto his massive bed. The scent of him, of pine and rain, was everywhere, suffocating me.

I shoved at his chest with all my might, my voice rising to a frantic scream. "I'm Elara! Alaric, look at me! I'm not Seraphina!"

My scream seemed to penetrate the drunken haze. He froze, his heavy body pinning me to the mattress. He blinked, his eyes struggling to focus on my face. For a split second, I saw a flicker of confusion.

Then, his expression softened into something weary. He didn't move away. Instead, he just collapsed against me, his arms wrapping around me in a crushing embrace.

"Don't leave," he mumbled into my hair, his voice thick with sleep and sorrow. A moment later, his breathing evened out, and he was dead to the world.

I was trapped. His Alpha strength, even in sleep, was immense. My mind was reeling, my body trembling with a mixture of shock, disgust, and a deep, aching sadness. Exhaustion finally won, and I fell into a restless, dreamless sleep in the arms of the man who was destroying me.

The first thing I saw when I woke was the gray morning light filtering through the window. The second thing I saw was Alaric, standing by the side of the bed, fully dressed.

His face was a mask of cold fury.

"Elara," he said, his voice dangerously low. "What are you doing in my bed?"

Before I could even form a response, the full force of his Alpha's Command crashed down on me, pinning me to the sheets with its invisible weight. It was filled with disappointment and utter disgust.

"This is unacceptable," he snarled. "If I ever find you in my room again, I will have you removed to the Omega barracks permanently. You will not be permitted to step foot in this house again. Do you understand?"

The injustice of it was a bitter pill in my throat. He was punishing me for his mistake. I wanted to scream, to tell him what he'd done, but I knew it was useless. He had already judged and sentenced me.

"Yes, Alpha," I whispered, lowering my head in submission. "I'm sorry."

I scrambled out of his bed and fled the room, his cold, accusing gaze burning into my back.

Just as I reached the hallway, I ran straight into Seraphina. She was holding two cups of coffee, a bright smile on her face that faltered the moment she saw me coming out of Alaric's room.

Her eyes widened in shock, then narrowed into slits of pure venom. "Elara? What were you doing in Alaric's room?"

My face was pale, my mind blank with humiliation. I couldn't speak. I just pushed past her and ran to the sanctuary of my own small room.

But there was no sanctuary. She followed me, slamming my door open.

"You shameless little slut!" she hissed, her voice dripping with contempt. "The Alpha gets drunk one night, and you seize the opportunity to climb into his bed? How pathetic. How disgusting."

She took a step closer, her aura crackling with menace. "Let me give you a warning, Omega. Try a stunt like that again, and I will personally see to it that you are cast out. You'll be a Rogue, with no pack to protect you. And we both know what happens to lone female Rogues."

The threat hung in the air, heavy and terrifying. I sank to the floor, the last of my strength gone, as silent tears finally began to fall.

Five more days. I just had to survive five more days.